


Just Say Yes

by wintercreek



Category: Glee
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-23
Updated: 2011-10-23
Packaged: 2017-11-12 15:51:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/492956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wintercreek/pseuds/wintercreek
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It occurs to him that not only does he not remember waking up, the night he'd slept in Blaine's room, but also that <em>Blaine</em> hadn't mentioned any screams. Kurt sincerely doubts that <em>Hamlet</em> or trigonometry are the secret to ending his nightmares, but maybe Blaine is. Maybe something about Blaine's room, the smell of someone else on the pillow and the sound of Blaine's pencil tapping on the desk, kept the dreams away. Maybe Blaine did.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just Say Yes

**Author's Note:**

> From the Glee Fluff Meme. Prompt:
> 
> _Shortly after Kurt moves to Dalton he falls asleep in Blaine's room. He's been having nightmares and not sleeping well for some time, but that night he sleeps all the way through the night._
> 
> _He thinks his nightmares might be getting better, but he doesn't sleep well the next night, or the next. He starts to think it might be because he felt safe with Blaine, and so orchestrates a sleepover the next night to see if that's what's going on. He sleeps through the night... so eventually he & Blaine establish a routine whereby one or the other will sneak into the other's dorm room after light's out._
> 
> _One night Burt turns up at Dalton late because of a family emergency (grandparent/aunt/uncle in hospital maybe?) and Kurt isn't in his room. They find him curled up asleep in Blaine's bed. Cue awkward conversations & we're just friends, Dad but ultimately Burt things it's adorable._
> 
> _OP would have literally no complaints if this turned into Klaine._
> 
> _tl;dr Pre-Klaine Kurt sleeps in Blaine's dorm room because he doesn't have nightmares on the nights they're together. They're adorable._

Kurt has resigned himself to the idea that this is his new normal. His first kiss was stolen from him in a locker room, he's had to leave all his friends and his wardrobe behind, and he'll never get a full night's sleep again.

The nightmares are usually of Karofsky – no surprise there – and have been since that day a month ago. Kurt dreams of Karofsky's fists, of locker slams, of the menacing moments when Karofsky stole the cake topper and when he whispered a reminder of his promise to kill Kurt. Sometimes, though, the nightmares are worse. Sometimes they're of his dad in the hospital, cold and still and never waking up.

And sometimes, in the nightmares, Kurt stands in the middle of a crowd, at school or the hospital or the mall, and screams and _screams_ and no one hears him. No one helps him. He is entirely alone with his fear and his desperation, and in the very worst moments he's seized with a certainty that it's his fault that he's alone.

Kurt's taken to putting off sleep as long as possible, so when Blaine mentions that he'll be pulling an all-nighter, Kurt asks to study with him.

"I have so much catch-up work," Kurt says. "I might as well have not started my junior year at McKinley at all."

Blaine nods understandingly. "Yeah, the transition's rough. I had to repeat my freshman year, actually."

Kurt gives Blaine what he hopes is an inquiring look, but Blaine doesn't take him up on it. The silence hangs between them until Kurt gives up and breaks it with a light "So that's why you're old for a sophomore. Thank goodness for that no harassment policy, right?"

"It's pretty great," Blaine agrees. "Anyway, want to grab your stuff and meet in my room? I don't know if I told you this already, but my parents pay for a single for me, so we won't be bothering my non-existent roommate."

In fifteen minutes, Kurt's outside Blaine's door with his books weighing down his satchel and his laptop tucked under his arm. They settle in, Blaine at the desk and Kurt on the bed, and although Blaine apologizes for not having a second desk Kurt's privately pleased to be studying on the bed. It smells of Blaine, and it's so comfortable.

Mr. Chilton, the staff member doing rounds this evening, knocks at the door. "Saw your light," he says, but he smiles indulgently at the sight of them working and promises to let it slide. "Just don't make a habit of it, boys. Sleepovers are for weekends, all right?"

They agree and wish him a good night before turning back to their books.

Kurt gets halfway through _Hamlet,_ making notes for the paper he'll be writing tomorrow, before he switches to trig. It's ridiculous that he has to complete the whole problem set when he's clearly already learned how to work with sine waves, but he's grateful now for something he can do on autopilot. He's getting tired; it's past one. Kurt glances up at Blaine, hunched over his chemistry textbook and frowning at a problem set of his own, and feels warm.

He turns back to his math, and that's the last thing he remembers until someone shakes his shoulder gently.

"Kurt, hey, wake up," Blaine says.

Kurt sits up blearily. "Huh?"

"You were drooling on your papers," Blaine tells him fondly. "And I think you'd be more comfortable lying down on your back instead of folded over your math book."

"Okay," Kurt agrees, still mostly asleep. He lets Blaine pile the books on the floor and watches absently while Blaine carries Kurt's computer to the desk.

Blaine smiles at him. "You can go back to sleep now."

"Okay," Kurt says again. He curls on his side, nose pressed to Blaine's pillow, and he's only dimly aware of Blaine huffing a laugh as he spreads a blanket over Kurt.

In the morning, Kurt wakes up with the sun. He stretches, feeling good: strong, solid, not shaky with fatigue like he has been. Blaine's asleep at his desk, head pillowed on his arms, snoring faintly.

Kurt watches the rise and fall of Blaine's back, wondering if he should sneak out quietly or try to wake Blaine and move him to the bed. Then it hits him: he didn't wake up screaming, or shaking, or for any reason other than Blaine getting him situated. Maybe it's finally sunk in to his subconscious that he's safe at Dalton. Maybe the nightmares are over.

*

Kurt almost dances through his Wednesday classes, drawing approving looks from his teachers as he debates and discusses and offers to work problems in front of the class. Warblers practice is somehow a sparkling wonderland of harmonies. Well, maybe he wouldn't go that far. Still, Kurt feels the best he's felt for weeks. He takes in the dark shadows under Blaine's eyes and wishes he could pass off some of this sense of well-rested joie de vivre. Hopefully they'll both sleep well tonight.

It's not to be. Kurt's nightmares are back, as bad as ever, Wednesday and Thursday and Friday nights. He's glad he has a single – his is furnished as a double, but there haven't been any other mid-semester transfers yet – Kurt would feel terrible waking a roommate every night.

It occurs to him that not only does he not remember waking up, the night he'd slept in Blaine's room, but also that _Blaine_ hadn't mentioned any screams. Kurt sincerely doubts that _Hamlet_ or trigonometry are the secret to ending his nightmares, but maybe Blaine is. Maybe something about Blaine's room, the smell of someone else on the pillow and the sound of Blaine's pencil tapping on the desk, kept the dreams away. Maybe Blaine did.

Kurt has been going home on the weekends, but today he's too tired to think the drive is a good idea, particularly with the risk of harsh winter weather. He calls his dad with a litany of work to do and says he'll try to come home next weekend. Then he makes his way to the cafeteria for lunch and finds Blaine.

"Kurt, are you sleeping at all?" Blaine asks before Kurt can open his mouth. "No offense, but you look awful."

This will be easier than he thought. "I really haven't been," Kurt says. "I think I'm working too hard. Want to take a night off with me?"

Blaine grins. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well," Kurt says, "I also have a single. And a good portion of my extensive DVD collection is here. I thought we could watch movies and not do homework and maybe even go to sleep before midnight."

"You wild man," Blaine teases. "That sounds great. If we're going to bed before midnight, we better get an early start. You want to order in dinner and put the first movie on at six?"

Kurt beams at him. "You're on."

And so it is that by eleven that night they're tucking their pajama-clad selves into Kurt's two beds. They keep talking in the dark until almost midnight, sharing secrets and dreams and tales of the first times they read _Harry Potter_. When Kurt drops off into sleep, he sleeps solidly until the alarm buzzes at seven.

"Tur'noff," Blaine mumbles.

Kurt slaps the snooze button, then slides the toggle to Off, and watches as Blaine rolls over. He can't go back to sleep just yet. He needs to ponder this. It's not Dalton that made the nightmares stop: it's Blaine.

*

Kurt waits until after dinner, Sunday evening, to bring it up. He's spent all day thinking about it, around his homework and during Warblers practice, and it's come down to the reality that he won't be able to make up an excuse to spend every night sleeping in the same room as Blaine. He'll have to be honest.

They're in Blaine's room again, Kurt on the bed with his laptop balanced on his stomach and Blaine at the desk again. Kurt clears his throat. "So, um, I have a favor to ask. Kind of a big one."

"You know you can ask me anything," Blaine says encouragingly. "If I can help, I want to."

"It's like this," Kurt says, and lets it all come spilling out. Blaine knows about Karofsky, and he knows a little bit about Kurt's dad's heart attack, but telling him about the dreams means Kurt has to be more honest than he's been with anyone about how terrible this fall has been. He can't look at Blaine while he's speaking. Finally, Kurt stops looking at the ceiling and turns his head toward the desk. Blaine's not there.

He's sitting on the floor near the bed, maybe a foot from Kurt's head. "God, Kurt," he breathes. "I had no idea it was that bad. I mean, I knew you weren't sleeping well, but that's—"

"Yeah," Kurt agrees. He bites his lip. "And here's the favor. The night I fell asleep over here, while we were studying? I didn't have any nightmares. I didn't have any when you stayed in my room, either. I think something about you keeps them away."

"Or maybe not being alone keeps them away," Blaine points out reasonably. "Have you thought of asking for a roommate?"

Kurt sighs. "I really don't want to explain all that to anyone else. Besides, you're my closest friend here. I don't think sharing a room with a stranger is going to have the same effect."

Blaine nods slowly. "That makes sense." He looks up and away, thoughtful. "I don't think we can get away with me just moving into your room, and the studying excuse will only work so many times, but maybe we can take turns sneaking over after lights-out?"

"Oh yes," Kurt says, feeling limp with relief. "And it doesn't have to be every night. Just a few nights a week would make such a difference."

"Hey." Blaine frowns at him. "It should be every night, if we can. I want to help you with this. Sleeping in the same room with you – that's an easy thing for me to do."

They agree to start immediately. Kurt packs up his books and laptop just before curfew but leaves his cell phone in case they get caught and need a reason for him to have snuck over. A half-hour after lights-out, Kurt eases his door open. The coast is clear. He darts to the stairwell and climbs up a flight to Blaine's floor. From there it's a quick dash down the hall and into Blaine's room.

"Hi," Kurt whispers as he slips in the door.

"Hey," Blaine answers.

Kurt makes his way over to the bed and stands there. "Huh."

Blaine laughs quietly. "Yeah, I didn't think about this part. But, you know, it's up against the wall, so there's only one side we have to worry about falling off of. And neither one of us is that big a guy, so we'll probably fit."

Awkwardly, Kurt climbs under the covers. They're as wide as the twin mattress, lying shoulder to shoulder on their backs. He's suddenly hyperaware of his right side, of every inch of him pressed against Blaine with only two layers of pajamas to separate their skin. Blaine is attractive, and so kind to Kurt, and actually gay. Kurt's well on his way to falling in love with Blaine, if he's honest with himself. There are so many ways for this to end badly.

"Maybe we shouldn't do this," Kurt says. "I'll just go back to my room, and tomorrow you can come over and sleep in the extra bed. If— If you still want to." He starts to slide out.

Blaine stops him with a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, no, it's fine. Come on, we'll sleep back to back. That'll give us a little more space."

Kurt feels better when their backs are pressed together. He smiles into the dark when Blaine tangles their feet. Now as long as Kurt's body doesn't do anything embarrassing, he thinks he can make it through the night.

He lies awake until after Blaine's soft snore starts up. It should be irritating; it's strangely comforting, instead, and it's to that sound that Kurt falls to sleep.

*

Two weeks later, Kurt is the best rested he's been since summer. They spend a night or two apart during the week, and when Kurt goes home on Saturdays they're separated, of course. He's thinking of inviting Blaine to come with him for a visit. There's no way his dad will let Blaine stay in Kurt's room, but having him in the same house might help anyway.

Today is a Monday, the beginning of their two weeks of winter break. Kurt's trying to convince himself to get up and sneak back to his room, but it's _warm_ under Blaine's covers and their legs are overlapping companionably. If Kurt wants, he can almost pretend that they're sharing a bed because they're more than friends. He imagines them, sometimes, curled together like spoons. He hasn't been brave enough to imagine yet what might happen when one of them gets an erection while they're spooning. When his thoughts start bending that direction, he thanks his lucky stars that they fall asleep back-to-back and wake up that way, or sometimes side by side.

"I should go," Kurt says. "My dad's expecting me home today. I haven't packed at all."

Whatever Blaine might have said is lost in the sound of knocking on the door. They exchange confused looks.

"Blaine?" Mr. Chilton calls. "Have you seen Kurt? He's not in his room or in the common spaces."

"Yeah, he's here," Blaine answers. His eyes widen and he claps a hand over his mouth.

Kurt turns his face into Blaine's shoulder, stifling a laugh. "Not awake yet, are you."

The doorknob turns and Mr. Chilton says, "I'm assuming you're up, then," in a joking voice as he steps in to the room. "Or not," he adds, staring at the two of them.

"This isn't what it looks like," Blaine protests, sitting up. Kurt winces.

"Seems to me it's pretty clear what it looks like," Kurt's dad says, and seriously, this morning started so well.

Kurt rolls to face the door and sits up slowly, summoning as much dignity as he can. "While I appreciate that this appears compromising, Dad, I assure you that we're both gentlemen and nothing ... like that has happened. Now if you'll excuse us, I'm sure Blaine would like to get dressed, and I'd like to get back to my room and do the same."

He takes a moment to fuss with the blankets on the bed, giving every appearance of haughty displeasure while privately thinking, please, please let me not have any obvious remnant of morning erection, please. It works, or perhaps the shock of being walked in on works. It's not fair, Kurt says petulantly in his head, that he hasn't even gotten to do something with Blaine that would lead to this counting as being walked in on.

When he looks up, his dad and Mr. Chilton have retreated. Blaine is watching him uncertainly.

"I hope you're not in too much trouble," Blaine says.

Kurt lifts his shoulders, then lets them drop. "I'll be fine. I'm going to go get dressed and explain myself to my father. I'll come back to say goodbye. Don't leave without seeing me."

Blaine smiles. "I won't, I promise."

"Okay," Kurt says. He hurries out the door and down the hall, his father right behind him. When they reach Kurt's room, he says firmly, "Dad. I will talk with you in a minute." He dresses in record time, takes a deep breath to steady himself, and invites his father in.

"I don't know what you've been up to—" his dad begins.

Kurt raises a hand. "Please have a seat and let me explain." When his dad's taken one of the desk chairs, Kurt pulls up the other and folds his hands in his lap. He's done nothing wrong, he reminds himself. Not that being involved with Blaine would be wrong. He's done nothing extreme. That might be the better way to think of it.

"I. I didn't tell you everything, about the bullying at McKinley," Kurt says. "I don’t want to talk about the details of it – some of it's not mine to tell – but what I need to tell you is that I've been having terrible nightmares. I had them every night until I fell asleep in Blaine's room one night when we were studying. That was the first good sleep I'd had in weeks."

His dad raises his eyebrows. "Just studying?"

Kurt sighs. "I swear to you, Blaine and I are nothing but friends. We're good friends, _best_ friends, and that's why he wanted to help me with the nightmares."

"You gotta know that sharing a bed with Blaine is not a long-term solution to nightmares," his dad says. "I think you should talk to someone. The counselor here, maybe? And you should do it today, before you come home. Because, Kurt, you can't have Blaine come stay in your room for the next two weeks."

"I know." Kurt slumps in his chair. "I'll make an appointment for this afternoon. Dad, why are you here, anyway?"

His dad chuckles. "We wanted to surprise you. Carole and Finn are downstairs. Thought a family lunch would be fun. We all miss you, kid."

Kurt stands and walks over to his dad, bending to hug him. "I miss you, too," he says. "So I'll go make an appointment with Ms. Rogers, and then we can go out for lunch." He thinks for a moment before deciding to press his luck. "Can Blaine come too?"

"Yeah," his dad answers. "He's a good friend to you. Least I could do is buy him lunch."

In typical Dalton fashion, Ms. Rogers goes above and beyond. She schedules Kurt in for that afternoon and suggests they talk about regular phone sessions over the break. Kurt's not convinced that she'll be as helpful as his dad thinks she will, but anything's worth a try when he's facing down two weeks of nightmares and no Blaine.

Lunch is fine, Blaine carrying the conversation and keeping everyone talking about football. Kurt's definitely going to have to invite him to a McKinley game. It's the perfect excuse. As they're leaving the restaurant, Kurt sees his dad stop Blaine.

Kurt hangs back a bit, not hovering but staying within earshot. He can hear his dad saying, "—thank you for looking out for Kurt. He's not always the best as asking for help. I'm glad he felt comfortable asking you."

"Yes sir, Mr. Hummel," Blaine says earnestly. "I was happy to help. I always want to be there for Kurt."

"Good," Kurt's dad says. "You're a good young man, Blaine."

Kurt feels a small smile curve on to his face. He hurries to catch up to Carole and Finn. He'll pretend he never heard that conversation, but Kurt knows he'll carry it with him, next to the memories of the nights he's spent with Blaine, just in case he needs it.

*

Three months later, Kurt's studying on his bed, surrounded by books and note cards. His paper is stubbornly refusing to write itself.

"Hey," Blaine says, peeking in through Kurt's door. "Can I come in?"

"Of course!" Kurt tells him. "What's up?"

Blaine comes to sit next to Kurt on the bed and takes his hand. "Well, it's been a tough week, with Pavarotti dying and us losing Regionals. I thought maybe, if you wanted, I could sleep in here tonight. Just to make sure your nightmares don't come back."

Kurt smiles softly. "I think I'd like that."

"Good," Blaine says. "Because I brought all my books and my pajamas, and it would be have been really awkward for me to explain those if you'd said no."

Late that night, when their homework is done and their computers are off, Blaine starts to climb into the spare bed.

"No, c'mere," Kurt says, patting his bed. "Sleep here. Please."

Blaine nods and wordlessly slides in next to Kurt. He rolls on his side, facing away, and Kurt thinks about sleeping back-to-back like they always have.

He closes his eyes and remembers all the scenarios he'd imagined, curled around Blaine, so close. Feeling brave, Kurt rolls to face the back of Blaine's head. He puts his hand on Blaine's waist and tugs gently. "Is this okay?"

"Yes," Blaine breathes. He scoots backward into the curve of Kurt's body and they nest together, just like spoons.

It's every bit as good as Kurt had imagined it would be. Blaine's hair tickles Kurt's nose. His body is warm and solid against Kurt's chest. Kurt kisses the bare spot just behind Blaine's ear. "Good night," he whispers.

"Good night," Blaine replies.

Dreams aren't the only scary thing he can face with Blaine's help, Kurt thinks. If he can have this, he can do anything.


End file.
